D&D General Starting PC age? [poll]

[Sacrosanct]

Every once in a while I look at my mini collection, and notice how a lot of my minis are of older people (mostly wizards). And every time I think, "Are those just for NPCs, because almost everyone I see and know has PCs that are young."

Only twice in 35 years did I play a PC who was older at level 1. So I'm curious. Have you played PCs that were older when starting a new campaign? I'm not gonna ask "what age do you typically start at" because I already know the answer to that. Rather, I want to find out how many people have played older PCs from the start at least a few times.

 

[Istbor]

I often use my own age.
I am however neither middle aged, or 17-20ish. So... I guess that top one works for me?

It is interesting to think about though. I could totally make some interesting characters that are older. Maybe I will think on it.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I often use my own age.
I am however neither middle aged, or 17-20ish. So... I guess that top one works for me?

It is interesting to think about though. I could totally make some interesting characters that are older. Maybe I will think on it.

That begs another question that I should have asked in the poll: "My own age". When I was 20, I thought people in their 40s were breaking down lol. Now I'm in my 40s, and while I have more aches and pains than in my 20s, I still feel pretty fit, so I wonder if people tend to create PCs that reflect their own age

 

[mortwatcher]

I usually start them at the young age to easier explain the lack of skill they have. it would feel strange to me playing a 50+ year old wizard that only knows few cantrips and first level spells, what was he doing all this time? Then again, I am playing dwarf cleric that is 125, but that is still youngish for dwarf standards.

 

[Sacrosanct]

I usually start them at the young age to easier explain the lack of skill they have. it would feel strange to me playing a 50+ year old wizard that only knows few cantrips and first level spells, what was he doing all this time? Then again, I am playing dwarf cleric that is 125, but that is still youngish for dwarf standards.

People's interests change all the time. I'm 45 and I just started woodworking in earnest. So maybe he was a city librarian, or sage, or town "wise man" or something who finally decided to learn magic

 

[Draegn]

For me it depends on the game and genre. Mostly characters are university age. If older there has to be a reason for them to stop what they were doing to then go adventuring. In the game I run, I have my players start at age five and then choose backgrounds that age them to a minimum of between 15 and 25 years of age. Few go past that.

 

[TallIan]

That begs another question that I should have asked in the poll: "My own age". When I was 20, I thought people in their 40s were breaking down lol. Now I'm in my 40s, and while I have more aches and pains than in my 20s, I still feel pretty fit, so I wonder if people tend to create PCs that reflect their own age

It would be an interesting question. I tended to use my own age until my later mid twenties, then my PC started getting younger again until they stabilised around 21. I also stopped actually caring about an actual number and just had a ballpark figure in my head.

Now, unless there is a particular reason for not being late teens to early twenties, I tend to just assume my PC's are twenty something.

 

[Charlaquin]

While my PCs are young adults more often than not, I do play characters of a variety of ages. I suppose I’d count that as “once or twice” each for adult, middle-aged, and 50+, which adds up to playing characters who are older than young-adult “fairly often.”

 

[Sacrosanct]

It's kinda funny how we have most of our PCs at younger ages (even at higher levels) when we have many examples of older fantasy heroes, and not just wizards

Gandalf
Most of the dwarves were middle aged or older in the Hobbit, including Gimli (139 with a lifespan of 200 years for dwarves)
Boramir (41)
The Hound (GoT) 42 (and several other GoT characters)
Remus Lupin (38)
Adoulla Mahkslood (60)
Fflewddr fflam (50s?)
Conan the Barbarian
Thom Merrilin (50s-60s)
Harry Dresden (39 and still active)
Barak (middle aged at least)
And I'm sure many more I'm not remembering off the top of my head

 

[Sacrosanct]

That brings another interesting observation; a bit of a contradiction in the D&D world. When you look at D&D high level NPCs, most are middle aged or older. However, with how adventures are designed, you can get to level 15+ in less than a year by doing a single campaign. Most high level PCs are probably still young adults, while the NPCs are much older (especially humans). An interesting observation on how the mechanics of D&D don't really support the lore of D&D. No reason an NPC wouldn't get to high level as fast as a PC, so there should be a lot more young high level NPCs floating around.